Practical
Plants

Sorghum halepense

Johnson Grass

a perennial member of the Sorghum genus in the family Gramineae.

No photo available

Taxonomy and growth

Family
Gramineae
Genus
Sorghum
Life cycle
perennial
Growth rate
vigorous
Height
2 m
Spread
1.2 m
Fertility
Wind
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Wind

Uses

Toxicity

Toxicity warning. The historical record reports a hazard for this plant. Do not use it to decide which parts are safe to eat or use medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The pollen can induce hay fever[7].

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - raw or cooked. It can be used whole in a similar manner to rice or millet, or it can be ground into a flour and used as a cereal in making bread, cakes etc[8][2].

Plant part
Seed

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The seed is demulcent and diuretic[6].

Product or use
Demulcent
Product or use
Diuretic

Material uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The plant is a potential source of biomass with yields of up to 19 tonnes per hectare[7].

Product or use
Biomass

Environment

Range
Europe to Asia.
Habitat
Dry open habitats[9].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
no shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 8+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline
Tolerances
drought
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
tolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - sow April in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 2 weeks. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots once they are large enough to handle and plant them out after the last expected frosts. Division in mid spring as the plant comes into new growth. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found it best to pot up the smaller divisions and grow them on in a lightly shaded position in a cold frame, planting them out once they are well established in the summer.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

An easily grown plant, it succeeds in ordinary garden soil[1]. It is adapted to a wide range of soil types, including upland clay, but seems to do best on porous fertile lowlands and river bottoms[7]. It does well on heavy clay soils of relatively high fertility and water holding capacity[7]. Temperatures below 13°C tend to inhibit flowering[7]. For best results, it requires a warm sunny position[1]. The plant is reported to tolerate an annual precipitation in the range of 9 to 429cm, an annual temperature in the range of 8.3 to 27.8°C and a pH of 4.9 to 8.2[7]. This species is not very winter hardy, tolerating occasional temperatures down to about -5°c so long as the soil is not too wet. It is best adapted to warm humid summer-rainfall areas in the subtropics, not growing well in strictly tropical areas[7]. A very aggressive plant[8], spreading freely at the roots and only suitable for large areas[5]. It is a parent of the cultivated Sorghum (S. bicolor)[3]. Classified as a short day plant, it does not flower if the daylight hours exceed about 13 hours per day[7].

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  2. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

    ↩

  3. Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952-00-00

    ↩

  4. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

  5. Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990-00-00 ISBN 0 460 86048 8

    ↩

  6. Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986-00-00

    ↩

  7. Duke. J. Handbook of Energy Crops - 1983-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5↩6↩7↩8

  8. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  9. ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964-00-00

    ↩

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